As you might have guessed, the East Coast Music Awards are about to

descend on the capital city...and we're deep into preparation. Which

includes setting up our production office at Musiplex - where four of

the ECMA showcases will be held: Bluegrass, Black Vibes, The

Aboriginal Showcase and The Battle of the Bands.

And we're helping out with Big Hearts for the Homeless - you may have

seen the posters appearing all over town. Yesterday, some of the young

performers paid a visit to the Men's Shelter to see for themselves

what they're supporting by taking to the stage on Valentine's Day.

http://justFRED.ca/cmine/

And on the calendar today...the Tallest Band on Earth...Open Choir

Practice with Choeeur de Soulanges...an illustrated lecture on Roman

coins...and more...

http://justfred.ca/justfred.forums/calendar.php?do=getinfo&day=2008-1-31&c=1

So...back to the ECMA preparations...and trying to find an excuse to

get outside for a while to enjoy the sudden thaw.

Cheers,

George

justFRED.ca

We don't normally attend media conferences - but yesterday was an exception as the local organizers of the 2008 Run for the Cure announced the plans for the 2008 event at Old Government House.

Fredericton Volunteer Run Director Barbara Thompson, herself a breast cancer survivor, says the Fredericton run has raised more than $2.1million in the past nine years with participation reaching more than2,500 last year: 110 teams and more than 200 volunteers.

And breast cancer rates are dropping. This year, the target is breast screen in New Brunswick aimed at women between 50 and 69 years of age.Early discovery and treatment mean surivival rates of 90 per cent atfive years post-treatment.

In our region, an estimated 1700 women developed breast cancer last year, and of those, 455 will die from the disease. In the Saint John River Valley, 1 in 8 women will be touched by breast cancer. That's higher than the national average: 1 in 9.

Local artist Sheila McPhee was on hand to donate her painting -Spirit - to the cause. And Tim Richardson, filling in for the Lt.Governor (prevented from traveling back from the Moncton area due to weather), gave an impassioned presentation about the importance of this event to the community, the province and to Old Government House as a symbol of the strength and unity of New Brunswickers.

Mark Sunday, October 5, 2008 on your calendar for this year's run at Old Government House in Fredericton. We'll be there.

Cheers,
George
justFRED.ca

Events

The 10th Anniversary Run for the Cure Kickoff is at noon today at OldGovernment House. Ten years. Of heartbreak, but also of hope. Anyonewho's taken part in the annual event knows the feeling of hope thatinfuses the annual event.

Details about this and other events in the http://justfred.ca/justfred.forums/calendar.php?do=getinfo&day=2008-1-29&c=1">calendar...

Galleries

We've been enjoying the challenge of adding to the Day At The Officefeature with photo visits to less than usual work places.

http://justFRED.ca/cmine/">http://justFRED.ca/cmine/

Don't be shy if you have suggestions for us - for this feature oranything else on the site. Just send us a brief note using thecontact form:

http://justfred.ca/contact_form.php">http://justfred.ca/contact_form.php

justFRED Stuff

We're still doing the tail end of the server move / cleanup. And wespent part of the weekend setting up our new office at Musiplex (it'sa LONG way from ready to use, but the clock's ticking: we MUST beready for the opening of the ECMA's at the end of next week).

Plus we're in the planning process for the long overdue justFREDrevamp that includes the recent replacement of the home page system.

Thanks for your patience while we hunt down and kill the bugs.

Cheers,
George
justFRED.ca

...and it's not going away without leaving some messy weather behind: snow and freezing rain today, and then +6 and rain on Wednesday.

Lots in the galleries since Friday: our usual visit to the market, photos from the Country Showcase, some out-of-the-office work places, and more:

http://justFRED.ca/cmine/">http://justFRED.ca/cmine/

In the http://justfred.ca/justfred.forums/calendar.php?do=getinfo&day=2008-1-28&c=1">calendar, you'll find blood donor clinics, indoor and outdoor skating, and more.

And we've been busy setting up our new Northside office at Musiplex in prepapration for the four showcases The Plex will host during the East Coast Music Awards in early February. Lots to do between now and then, so we'd better get back to work now...

Cheers,
George
justFRED.ca

No, the thermometer isn't broken. It's the central heating system

called The Sun...

So warm up with some Quartango at the Playhouse...or visit STU for

the student Multucultural Fair...those are today...the New Brunswick

Country Showcase is at the Playhouse on Saturday...there's skating

everywhere (but be careful...this is 'frozen skin' weather)...Check

the Calendar for these and more events...

http://justfred.ca/justfred.forums/calendar.php?do=getinfo&day=2008-1-25&c=1">Friday

http://justfred.ca/justfred.forums/calendar.php?do=getinfo&day=2008-1-26&c=1">Saturday

http://justfred.ca/justfred.forums/calendar.php?do=getinfo&day=2008-1-27&c=1">Sunday

And if you need to warm up, check out the 3rd and final collection of

http://www.justfred.ca/cmine/displayimage.php?album=633&pos=0">September
2007 photos.

Have a great weekend...and if you see us out and about with our

cameras, please Say Cheese! - but do it quickly before we both freeze

into place.

Cheers,

George

justFRED.ca

Is it just me, or is January always a struggle? Just getting dressed

in layer after layer seems to take forever...and getting from one

place to another seems to take 10 times longer than in, say,

September.

Maybe it comes from going through a couple of thousand photos from

late summer / early fall for the September 2007 retrospective we're

featuring this week.

Here's part 2 of 3 parts:

http://justfred.ca/cmine/displayimage.php?album=633&pos=0">http://justfred.ca/cmine/displayimage.php?album=633&pos=0

The Grand Opening of Changes, Pat Carlson's combination clothing and

accessories store, and training centre in the former 'This Old Thing'

location takes place this morning. Drop by and wish Pat and her crew

best wishes...and check out some of the wonderful bargains she has

for sale.

http://justfred.ca/cmine/displayimage.php?album=536&pos=0">http://justfred.ca/cmine/displayimage.php?album=536&pos=0

For business owners, Peter Studer, ACOA, with expert advice on how

local companies can prepare themselves for the huge aerospace and

defense projects that are coming this way.

http://justfred.ca/cmine/displayimage.php?album=669&pos=0">http://justfred.ca/cmine/displayimage.php?album=669&pos=0

ECMA, Musplex and justFRED

It's official - the ECMA's are including Musiplex - the amazing new

entertainment and music center in Fredericton North - as part of the

venues for the annual Atlantic music festival in February. And we're

the official photographers / videographers for more than 10 hours of

performances. We'll have the details for you tomorrow...including a

great new event - The Battle of The Bands - aimed at local high

school talent.

So have a great Thursday - TGIT, right?

Cheers,

George

justFRED.ca

Didn't seem worth reminding you that we still have snow, the

temperature is below freezing, and that the usual Wednesday events

are on...so we didn't. Not by justFRED-0-GRAM, anyway.

Just a quick note in the blog...and we're off to do the background

work that's so important but time consuming: phone calls and meetings.

We're lining up events, tickets, prizes, sponsorships...and while it

often feels like pushing rope uphill, when it all comes together,

nothing beats it.

So...to the phones...

Cheers,

George

justFRED.ca

The bitterly cold temperatures are easing...but the warmer weather
will bring more snow.

On the site today, a visit with quilter Jennifer Beckley, an easy
grape jam recipe, more pics of the new Northside Canadian Tire Store
under construction (and you thought your job was tough...)...

http://justFRED.ca/cmine/">http://justFRED.ca/cmine/

Symphony NB is in town tonight, there's skating just about
everywhere, various cadet corps meet tonight and there's Rotary
Bingo...plus more.

http://justfred.ca/justfred.forums/calendar.php?do=getinfo&day=2008-1-29&c=1">Upcoming
Events

The justFRED Forums

You asked - we responded. They're leaner...but still a friendly place
to share info.

http://justfred.ca/justfred.forums/index.php">http://justfred.ca/justfred.forums/index.php

That link takes you to a handy page that shows you the latest forum
postings AND a quick list of the events for the day.

Cheers,

George

justFRED.ca

We're still cleaning up from the server move. And we'd really
appreciate any feedback, partcularly related to any problems you're
having with any part of the site...

Please use our http://www.justfred.ca/contact_form.php">contact form
to report any issues.

The Galleries

More smiling faces around town - despite the deep freeze - and a
visit with weaver Karen Leblanc plus our weekend trip to the Market

http://justFRED.ca/cmine/">http://justFRED.ca/cmine/

The Calendar

It's exam time at FHS, several blood donor clinics around town, new
exhibits at the Beaverbrook Art Gallery and more.

http://justfred.ca/justfred.forums/calendar.php?do=getinfo&day=2008-1-28&c=1">Upcoming
Events

Stay warm...and watch out for that skin chilling wind...

Cheers,
George
justFRED.ca

justFRED Server Problems

The move to the new web server is taking longer than we'd hoped.

(Partly because the old server is SOOOO slow, and partly because the

justFRED web site is HUGE.)

Because we're still running from the old server, some folks

(including us) have occasionally seen a big green rectangle where the

home page slideshow should be. This is caused by a timeout: it happens

when your web browser gets tired of waiting for the slideshow to

arrive, and just gives up.

The new server set up and running...however, two small but important

pieces aren't fully functional yet. We're working on it, and with any

luck, should be throwing the switch sometime over the weekend.

So thanks for your patience...and our apoolgies for any

inconvenience. Once this is behind us, you should notice a

considerable improvement in performance.

We're certainly delighted with the flexibility the new home page

system is giving us: the addition of video clips to the home page,

and the ability to add / delete / modify home page content in minutes

rather than nearly an hour for even the smallest change.

The Poll and the Prize

The results are fairly one-sided: 80 per cent think it's a major

improvement. And the member name we pulled from the Electric Hat to

win our gift basket: ROSALIND

Thank you to everyone for taking part. The feedback is really helpful

to us.

Cheers,

George

justFRED.ca